


First Blossom

by princessdi



Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Awkward Crush, Character Study, Crush at First Sight, Developing Relationship, Drama, Drama & Romance, F/M, Historical Hetalia, Historical References, Hungary-Centric (Hetalia), Mentioned Prussia (Hetalia), Parallels, Past Hungary/Prussia (Hetalia), Pre-Relationship, Unrequited Crush, Unresolved Romantic Tension, Unresolved Tension, War, i say aushun stans have rights just this once, if you know what comes later in my stories - then yes; if not then there's no tension, kinda - its up to interpretation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-10
Updated: 2020-06-10
Packaged: 2021-03-03 19:33:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,717
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24640924
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/princessdi/pseuds/princessdi
Summary: At long last, Hungary's penultimate battle against the Ottomans comes. But with it brings forth the new challenge of dealing with a new overlord, Austria, who whispers sweet promises on how this time things will be different. Does Erzsébet listen to the voices of her people, who bid her to fight against all tyrants, or does she allow her heart to trust this pleasant stranger?
Relationships: Austria/Hungary (Hetalia)
Comments: 11
Kudos: 11





	First Blossom

_Nagyharsány, 1687._

In any other time, it would’ve felt glorious to be back on the battlefield. In any other battle, Hungary would’ve allowed herself a moment to feel the comfort of armor digging into her shoulders, of the scent of metallic filling her nose and the rhythm of her horse’s determined gallop. But this was not just any regular battle. This was one she had been preparing years for, one she had been fighting for in the swampy marshlands with her people once her sovereignty had been cruelly revoked by fish much larger than she. There could be no reveling until the last drop of blood was spilt and freedom was hers.

She unsheathed her sword and spurred her horse, commanding the beast to hurry faster. There was an opening for her, a break in the Ottoman formation and she would seize it. Her heart longed to be in the very thick of things. She glanced backwards, noting some of the German states mounted in the distance with distaste. Apparently, they had fought a major war not too long ago, one that cost them their lives and their land, hence their reticence to personally shed more blood.

‘Fine,’ Erzsébet thought with a sniff. ‘But don’t expect me to be on the frontlines for _your_ battles.’

She dismounted, hopping down with a gracefulness that displayed centuries of experience. War was a familiar dance and she was its master. She slashed and swung and blocked with ease. If she thought about it, she was disappointed about how stale the Ottoman forces had become, how complacent they were in their superiority. There was no mystique in how they fought. Everything was the same as it was when Suleiman whirled into her life in 1521 and stole everything. For a moment, Erzsébet pitied Sadiq for this oversight. But then she remembered the towering palaces, the glimmering riches, and the finest fabrics she’d ever seen and discarded her pity. It would be wasted on the man who believed he had everything.

As the Ottoman troops thinned out, Germans filled in. Over the clanging of metal, she could hear their shouting in their native tongue. The half of her mind unoccupied with the fight knocked the rust off her German, whirling quickly to translate their cries and commands. She smiled, memories of her childhood rushing to the fore. There was her impish Teuton, threatening a crusade upon all of Eastern Europe and proving useful if paid enough. She remembered him teaching her the throaty sounds of his own language and that of those he’d conquered. There was a new name he went by; he had told her that recently. Prussia, like that of the people he threatened with conversion or death. Distasteful, but she supposed it fit. Erzsébet wondered if he was there among the fray, fighting for her behalf among the rest of his people. A small, foolish part of her hoped he was. She buried it.

A magnetic force compelled Hungary to look up and her gaze settled on him. There, atop the most gorgeous stallion, was Sadiq. She bristled, gripping her sword tighter in her right hand, and charged. This was the moment, the moment she had long been waiting for. Revenge would be hers, goddammit, brought forth from her will alone.

“Sadiq!” She yelled his name like a battle cry, commanding his full attention. Underneath his heavy Janissary hat, she saw his face darken with recognition. “Get down and fight like a man, you coward!” For good measure, she swiped at his legs.

He complied, landing with a thud. Sadiq unsheathed his scimitar, a smirk all the while on his face. “You call me the coward? But you’re the one who’s been fighting us from the bushes all these years.” He lazily beckoned her forward. “I should be the one throwing such accusations around at you.”

With a grunt, she charged, their swords clanging. She had no words, no taunts, she wished to hurl at him. Hungary only focused on her motions, on countering each of his blows and returning with her own forceful ones. A self-satisfied smirk always emerged when she successfully landed a blow against him. Which, thankfully, was often. This was the best she’d done against him yet. There would be well-earned pride in this victory.

Too soon, someone stepped in between them. Her irritation prickled the hairs up on the back of her neck. “What are you doing?” She hissed. She would not have what was hers stolen by a usurper.

A man turned around to face her. He had beautiful violet eyes, glistening like jewels. He was too pretty to be in armor, standing about in such a filthy place as a battlefield. Erzsébet wanted to march him home, back into the palaces he belonged in so the fighting could continue among the rest of the lowly creatures. He smiled at her, polite and apologetic. “Filling in for you. I presume you are Erzsébet?” At her little nod, his smile widened. “Wonderful, we’ve been looking for you. _Bayern_! Bring her back to camp! I’ll settle this matter.”

Erzsébet moved to protest, but the mysterious man had already begun sparring with Sadiq. There went her years of hard work, the glory given to another. She scowled, skulking besides whoever this _Bayern_ guy was back to the German camp. He paid her no mind, a fact she was appreciative of. She was too aggrieved to speak and would have been able to only offer him cutting remarks.

Minutes at the camp seemed to drag on for hours. The medics fussed around her, quickly moving to wrap her cuts and see what could be done about her bruising. Multiple times she had told them it was pointless, that they were wasting crucial supplies better served on another, but they ignored her. All they saw was a woman with mild injuries that needed to be protected from the world, never mind how many Ottomans she cut down on her own.

Whenever she tried to speak to one of the generals or those that looked like states, she would be brushed aside. All she wanted to know was if they’d won and what this meant for her people. Those, apparently, were answers she wouldn’t be privy to. Hungary bristled at this treatment, especially at how her title was disregarded by them all with such cool indifference. She suspected there was a reason for it, but without knowing _why_ she was lost.

At long last, the mysterious man reappeared. He materialized before her, as if by thin air. It was startling, but rather flattering that _someone_ , at long last, deemed her important enough to be informed.

He gave a slight bow, all awkward in his armor that prevented such gentlemanly motions. “I apologize for my earlier rudeness. So lost was I in the thick of things that I forgot to properly introduce myself.” His eyes met hers, held them for a long while. Electricity crackled through her veins and, embarrassed, her cheeks flushed. “I’m Roderich von Edelstein, better known to all the world as Austria. You’ve been quite the woman to find, Hungary. My men have been tearing up the countryside to find you, but your people refused to point them in the proper direction.” His tone was light, gently chiding her as if all this had been a joke both parties were in on.

Hungary remembered it, all of it. She had heard of her receiving a new king, one elected on the throne, but one that was as foreign as the one from the East. Habsburg, that’s what they called themselves. She’d heard grumblings from her people of tyrannical Catholicism and a willingness to make deals with the devil so long as they gained and the people suffered. She had refused to meet with them until she and her people were liberated. That’s why she stayed, fighting in the marshes until the bitter end, reaching out only to those most devoted nobles.

Erzsébet tried to piece the reality of what she knew – the horrible realities her people faced, the cruel punishments they endured and fled from – with the man before her now. If all this were true, and it was, then wouldn’t that make him the embodiment of her people’s suffering? That this was another man, another state, for them to fight against now? But this man, Roderich, didn’t he seem too beautiful to be the tyrant responsible? His face seemed so patient, so kind and open. His eyes were shining splendidly in the light, she wanted to dive in and get lost in them.

“Erzsébet? How are you faring? You’re staring at me with this vacant, dumbstruck expression. It’s rather disconcerting.” Concern furrowed Roderich’s brows, bunched them up tight together.

“I’m fine! Perfectly fine, I don’t mean to worry you.” Her cheeks burned hot. She averted her eyes to the floor. “There’s a lot to take in, I’m sure you understand.” Composed, she dared to meet his gaze once more. “Please understand that I wasn’t _trying_ to make anyone’s life difficult. I just…had to handle things in such a manner. As for my people, well, you know how they are. They can be a bit protective and always too eager to spurn the authorities on one’s behalf. Isn’t it endearing?”

“Mm, quite.” There was a dark glimmer of something in his eyes that was gone before she could categorize it. His easy smile returned with her reassurances. “Well, no matter. What counts now is that we’ve found you at last and you’re finally where you belong. Though, that does raise a slew of other issues that certainly require a resolution sooner rather than later. Are you well? I would prefer to handle them before nightfall in the privacy of my tent. Negotiating terms in public lends to all sorts of meddling busybodies and I don’t think we need anyone needling their way into our affairs.”

Erzsébet nodded, rising. Whatever trifles were in her mind cleared out at the idea of work. These were matters too important for her judgement to be clouded by petty things. “Lead the way.”

She was impressed with the way the men scattered out of Roderich’s way as they moved. It was different than how her men behaved around her. Where she walked, they congregated to trade stories and jokes with her, seeking approval. It was an after-battle ritual she enjoyed, one where the glory of the living could be praised and the courage of the fallen commemorated. She initially suspected it was a German thing but remembered the Teuton’s behavior with his own men and assumed instead it was a quirk of Roderich’s persona. She understood it. The man seemed too high above it all in a way mortals must find intimidating.

That _Bayern_ guy appeared again, swooping down to whisper something into Roderich’s ear while casting a glance back at Erzsébet. Whatever it was, it earned him a jabbing elbow to the side as he roared with laughter. Roderich gave him a sharp look of disapproval. “Don’t defile me with such talk. I don’t have to take that from you!” _Bayern_ scampered along, not out of fear from his threats, but from a desire to seek mischief elsewhere. She supposed they were related or, at least, familiar with each other in a way akin to family.

Inside the tent was majestic. Brilliant silks and fabrics were everywhere. She was stunned by the magnificence and felt shame for her own sparse living arrangements all these years. As Roderich circled around, taking his seat at the desk in the middle of the room, she assessed him. Here was a man who clearly had everything, who spoke and made the world listen. It should’ve been obvious to her before, what, with his strength to take on a foe she had failed multiple times against with her limited resources.

And, yet. Here he was. Staring at her with a friendly, inviting expression. The man who had everything wanted _her_ – or, really, her cooperation. But it was still a want that she could satiate.

Apparently, she had not been the only one doing research. “Ah, you’re the observant type? My, I wonder what all it is you’ve seen, what you’ve noticed. Just a glimpse behind your eyes would be satisfying enough, though it could never paint the full truth of your reality.” Gingerly, he rested his chin upon his fist. “My apologies if I’m getting carried overboard. Certainly, you don’t wish for me to ramble about such things. I’ve heard you have questions and I _sincerely_ apologize for the inability to provide you with answers for so long. You understand, we didn’t wish to speak so soon and risk having Fate revoke that which she so freely gave.”

Erzsébet cursed how he flirted so casually, to the point where she questioned whether he was even aware of the effect of his words. He had to be, she assured herself, he was too intelligent not to be aware of the purpose behind everything he did. Desperate not to be thrown completely off her guard, she latched onto the prospect of discussing business desperately. “Yes! Yes, I had quite a few, actually. I understand not wishing to jinx yourself, but some communication would have been appreciated! I assure you, I’m nothing short of reasonable.” Hungary calmed herself. Airing her grievances to him hardly felt therapeutic. She smiled and exhaled, relieving herself of her tensions. “A simple question first: how did we fare? Are my people free?”

Austria sighed and leaned back in his chair. “If this is the simple question, I fear what else the lady has in store.” He shook his head slightly, collecting his thoughts. He moved cautiously now, as if he were dealing with a cornered animal. “While this victory has not chased the Ottomans from your lands, it will make expelling them out much easier. I am most confident that it will only take a few more months to have them out completely. Rest assured, while this is not the end, it is the beginning of the end.” He tapped his fingers on the edge of the table, considering his next words. “I’m assuming, despite your absences in areas my men searched, you were never out of the loop, so to speak?”

“Your assumption is correct.” She turned the full intensity of her eyes upon him. She knew what words would be coming next and how she would have to battle against them now, but she wanted to make saying them before her difficult. It was devoid of malice but derived from a stubbornly defiant nature.

“Then you’re aware that these lands are, technically speaking, mine?” She nodded her head, slowly. Austria sighed again, this time much more frustrated. “That should answer your question on freedom, though I can only speculate as to how unsatisfying that must be to hear. I feel it’s best if I assure you that we only stepped in when chaos began breaking out after the old dynasty disintegrated. And, being so close to our borders, it was unwise to not step forth and make our claim.”

Hungary nodded her head again. “There’s no need to rehash history to me, Austria. I was witness to it too.” All the warmth had left her words and expression. She crossed her arms over her chest.

This required a new tactic. Roderich silently went through his options. Settling on the best one, his smile returned, as easy and light as it had previously been. “I know this isn’t an ideal situation, especially after all you had been fighting for, but I promise that this will work better for you.” He leaned forward, trying to convey his earnestness. “The immediate aftermath will be difficult and grueling, as it always is after these sorts of monumental changes. You and your people will need someone there for you to help take the worst of these burdens off your shoulders.” He slowly took her hand in his. He paused and, only when she didn’t offer any opposition, continued speaking. “Erzsébet, allow me to be that person for you. I have resources that will make this transition easier on you and all involved, but I can _only_ do that if you permit me to. I don’t wish to act over you or seem as if I’m denying your autonomy.” 

Erzsébet stared at his hand in hers. The dual nature of her being argued within her. The voices of her people demanded she yank free from his grasp, to fight, to curse at what little his words meant to their realities. But she was also a woman with her own desires and wishes. Her heart was pounding in her chest, ricocheting against her ribs. Her desires bid her to listen to her foolish heart, trust this man whose gentle demeanor promised no harm would ever come by his hand. He promised friendship and, in her greed, she wanted more.

Licking her lips, she at last met his eyes and commanded herself to hide the war raging within. Pragmatic. She had to be pragmatic, lest she become a fool. “I’ve heard tales from my people about forced conversions and heavy-handed tactics against those unwilling. I’m not accusing you of personal guilt,” she silently chided herself for mincing her words, so unlike her it was, “but I can only accept your offer if it means that any such improprieties will cease immediately.” She was proud of herself for taking a stand, as weak as it was, and not giving in as freely as she would have.

That dark glimmer returned in Austria’s eyes, once again gone before she could define it. Contempt? Disgust? Fury? Try as she might, she couldn’t place it. “All of that is part of the bargain. Those orders come from the highest ranks and, naturally, I have the access to prompt a lessening of them.” He opened his mouth before closing it quickly. She wondered what he had meant to say. “Though, I must warn you that nothing is overnight. Unlike the saints, I don’t provide miracles. Trust, specifically your trust in me, will be paramount.”

Hungary closed her eyes. She supposed this was as good an answer as she could expect. What of it, her trust in him? It shouldn’t exist, she didn’t know what sort of character this Roderich _really_ had. All she had were the instincts of her gut and her heart and what could they really be worth? They had led her to ridiculous things before, brought her worthless pain and agony. Nor was this a matter that purely affected her, it would have ramifications felt far and wide.

Erzsébet opened her eyes. “My trust is in your hands. But I’m warning you, once lost it can never be rebuilt.”

Roderich grinned, wide and toothy. The action didn’t seem natural to him. He released her hand with a gentle squeeze. “Fantastic! I can’t emphasize enough how thrilled I am!” He seemed more relaxed now, at ease with all in the world. “With that matter out of the way, is there anything else troubling you?”

She remembered her earlier curiosity, that which she felt on the battlefield. “Did you bring the support of all the Germans?” Embarrassment filled her immediately. It was a ridiculous question, one she shouldn’t even care about. If Prussia was here, he would’ve found her. He always managed to, regardless of whether she wanted it.

“ _All_ of them? You give half of them too much credit. Most couldn’t be bothered to fight a war within their own borders, much less one this far away.” Austria huffed, momentarily filled with the grievances of centuries past and present. Realizing she cared little for these, Roderich dropped it and picked up a teasing tone instead. “Why the inquiry? Is there a specific Hans, Wilhelm, or Friedrich you’re looking for?”

“There is someone I’m asking for, but he doesn’t go by any of those names.” Her courage had momentarily returned. Then she met Roderich’s gaze, how warm it was, and all thoughts of the Teuton slipped away. For reasons she didn’t understand, she refused to bring him up in Roderich’s presence for fear of cheapening his attention. “Forget it. I’m sorry, it was a foolish thought. One of those childhood friends best forgotten.”

Perplexed, Roderich tilted his head to the side. The action seemed so innocent and innocuous. “Are you sure? It’s no hassle, I assure you. And, if he’s not here, all their whereabouts are known to me. Tracking him down would hardly prove difficult.” She resolutely shook her head to which he shrugged, unbothered. “No matter. Some of them are hardly worth remembering. I know I try my hardest to forget a few. Seeing as that’s everything, I can have someone lead you to your chambers for the night. You’ll be attended there in full, no luxury within our humble means denied to you.”

Relieved, Erzsébet smiled, rising from her seat at the table. “Thank you, I would appreciate that. You tease me with the idea of luxuries! After living how I have, a nice bed safe from danger is the most valuable of them all.”

While he made the arrangements, she stood back and watched. The swiftness of how everyone jumped at his command had yet to cease amazing her. She considered teaching that in her own troops. But then the easy camaraderie that she treasured too much would be gone. Let them openly question her and view her as a peer, it made their loyalty that much more valuable.

At last, everything appeared in place. Roderich stood before her and, taking her hand in his, brought it to his lips. “Thank you for being so open to me. I’m sorry to belabor this so much, but I need you to understand that your trust is not misplaced. Rest well. I anxiously await till our next meeting in the morning.”

Erzsébet’s cheeks burned hot and an easy laugh escaped her. How charming was this little prince! “Know that I’m holding you to your word.” Despite the gravity of her promise, her tone was of airy chiding, flirty in nature. “Till morning, Roderich.” With that, she let herself be led away with eager thoughts about the future playing in her head.


End file.
